McIvor moving to OSPRI
Beef + Lamb New Zealand chief executive for the past eight years, Sam McIvor is heading for new pastures at Ospri, which runs NZ’s integrated animal disease management and traceability service.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) says it is calling for the Government to improve it’s latest biodiversity reforms.
In an email sent out to farmers earlier this week, signed by B+LNZ chief executive Sam McIvor and B+LNZ chair Andrew Morrison, the organisation says the Government’s latest updates to the National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity (NPSIB) is of particular relevance to sheep and beef farmers.
This, the email claims, is because of the significant amount of native vegetation on sheep and beef farmers.
“B+LNZ, along with other primary sector groups, successfully convinced the Government to pause the initial biodiversity reforms in 2020,” the email reads, adding that farmers had significant concerns regarding the proposed rules, especially those relating to Significant Natural Areas (SNAs) and the potential restrictions on what farmers could do in those areas.
“We believe the latest release [of the NPSIB] is badly timed,” the email states.
B+LNZ says it has undertaken a preliminary analysis of the exposure draft and, the email claims, the organisation will be arguing for the Government to make improvements to the latest proposals and slow down a “deluge of environmental policy reforms”.
The analysis states that criteria for identifying SNAs remains broad and will capture significant areas of sheep and beef farms.
“We previously advocated for the definition to be narrowed to identify habitats that are threatened, at risk, or rare as SNAs,” the emails says.
It claims that if certain areas of land are classified as an SNA, it will restrict farmers’ ability to undertake new or modified activities within or in surrounding SNAS.
In the email, B+LNZ say they are undertaking more in-depth analysis of the exposure draft of the NPSIB released last week and will provide further advice on the implications of the regulations to farmers.
South Waikato farm manager Ben Purua’s amazing transformation from gang life to milking cows was rewarded with the Ahuwhenua Young Maori Farmer award last night.
Bankers have been making record profits in the last few years, but those aren’t the only records they’ve been breaking, says Federated Farmers vice president Richard McIntyre.
The 2023-24 season has been a roller coaster ride for Waikato dairy farmers, according to Federated Farmers dairy section chair, Mathew Zonderop.
Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) director general Ray Smith says job cuts announced this morning will not impact the way the Ministry is organised or merge business units.
Scales Corporation is acquiring a number of orchard assets from Bostock Group.
Family and solidarity shone through at the 75 years of Ferdon sale in Otorohanga last month.
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